A Sad Demise
by Anastasia S
Summary: Slinkey the Fox, who fought with the Calormenes during the Battle at Stable Hill, is only mentioned twice in the Last Battle. Here is a piece written that talks about why he joined the enemy and what became of him.


**Disclaimer:** Slinkey and the other characters aren't mine. Also, one direct quotation is taken from pg. 136 of the Last Battle.

"Good evening, Fox." The Fox turned to look into the shadows caused by the small fire he had been lying in front of. He could barely make out the figure, but he knew from the voice that the one who had called him was indeed the Ape, Shift, who the Calormenes called the Mouthpiece of Aslan and to whom, it was assumed, only Aslan would speak. In truth, the Fox held no regard for Aslan, the so-called Great Lion who had supposedly created and redeemed all of Narnia. He didn't deny the existence of Aslan, but, in his opinion, Aslan didn't care much about Narnians like himself, especially since He had allowed the Fox's entire family to be killed by the sickness that had spread throughout the forest only months before the rumors of Aslan's return had surfaced. If Aslan was indeed residing in the stable, the Fox didn't want anything to do with Him, for he hated the very utterance of His Name. The Fox turned to reply to the Ape,

"I want nothing to do with your scheme, Ape, and I don't care one bit about whether or not you have the supposedly all-powerful Aslan inside that stable."

Shift was stunned for a minute, but recovered quickly, realizing that the Fox might still be of use to his plan.

"My dear Fox, whatever would make you think that I would come here to try to convince you that Aslan is in the stable? I have only come because I saw you at the meeting earlier, and you…interested me. Tell me, what is your name?"

The Fox was skeptical, so he kept up his guard as he responded,

"Slinkey is my name. I come from a highly respected fox family in these woods."

"Slinkey…Slinkey," Shift tested the name. This Fox certainly would have merit. "Tell me, Slinkey, how is it that you have come to deny the very existence of Aslan?"

"Ape," the Fox answered, annoyed at having to replay for Shift what he had just been going over in his mind, "I do not deny the existence of Aslan. I am quite certain that He exists, but I refuse to believe in Him and give Him the supposed honor He is due."

This answer interested Shift. He asked,

"Why do you dislike Aslan?"

Slinkey responded coldly, "I hate Him because He killed my family. He allowed them to suffer, when I have never done anything to cause Him to do so."

This pleased Shift. He continued,

"Well then, what if you could speak with Aslan, and ask Him why your family died? You can come with me to the stable if you'd like, and we can speak to Him before the midnight meeting begins."

"I have absolutely no interest in seeing or speaking with Aslan," responded Slinkey. "If He truly cared, He would have answered me at any of the other times I asked Him."

Shift smiled a most cunning smile, though the Fox did not see it.

"Good, good," he said. "You would be perfect to join us."

The Fox turned. "I already told you, I have no interest in joining your cause."

"Just hear me out," the Ape continued. "Whether or not you care about Aslan, we need your help. The former king has escaped his bonds, and we believe he will soon be gathering an army of his own to fight us. He already threatened one of the Calormene guards who was watching the Unicorn at the stable. Rishda, the Calormene captain, does not believe he will stay away long. In fact, he also convinced a poor, pitiful donkey to dress up as Aslan and follow him a round so that when he came to fight us, he could show us this false Aslan. He may even come tonight, and we've not nearly enough Narnians on our side to fight against them. Everyone that we have is just like you; they feel no great love for Aslan at all. Will you join us?"

Slinkey sighed. He might as well do as the Ape asked, because he would probably never hear the end of it otherwise. And if it would stop all this nonsense about Aslan, the cost was worth it.

"Where do you want me to go, and what do you want me to do?"

* * *

Slinkey stood between two Calormene soldiers, strategically placed a fair distance away from Wraggle the Satyr and the Talking Bull, who it seemed Shift had also talked in joining the battle. He wore no armor, of course, because Talking Beasts of Narnia neither wore armor nor carried weapons. He glanced casually around at everyone else, remembering that though there seemed to be very few that were fighting with him, there were also several more Calormene armies spread throughout Narnia that need only be summoned by the drum in order to come to his army's aid. The Calormene captain Rishda stood at the head of the group, along with the Ape who, Slinkey was surprised to see, didn't look so well—certainly not how he had looked earlier that evening when they had met. He must have been drinking again and joining in some revelry somewhere before the meeting. The former King of Narnia, Tirian, had already revealed himself and his rebellious group, and they were hiding like cowards behind the white rock, probably discussing whether to fight or surrender. Fools, thought Slinkey. They should know that they will never win, and they will all be killed by the end of the evening.

Suddenly, he caught a glimpse of a young girl stepping out from behind the rock, and he hardly had time to react as she began to fire arrows in the direction of the Calormenes. Whoever she was, this Daughter of Eve was certainly skilled in the art of archery. At the same time, an Eagle was diving in amongst the crowd and taking out some of the other Calormenes. Slinkey watched as Wraggle was struck with an arrow, and then he realized that Rishda was calling for everyone to strike back. Slinkey immediately focused his energy on the young boy with the sword; this Son of Adam, though he had an expression of seriousness on his face, looked simply terrified to be in the battle, and, Slinkey thought, if I can kill him, the other side will suffer a great loss, for indeed he appears to be one of their strongest.

As the Fox approached, the fear in Eustace's heart grew. What should he do? He raised his sword high and stiffened, preparing himself for what would either be his victory or his defeat. The next moment was a blinding flash, and it was almost impossible to see who was still alive. Then, from somewhere in the distance, came the voice of Rishda Tarkaan,

"Retire. Back-hither and reform."

Slinkey heard the Tarkaan, but as he tried to move, he found that his limbs were no longer cooperating. He realized that he had been fatally wounded by the Son of Adam's sword, and had quickly lost blood. He found himself sinking fast into darkness, and as the life left him, he silently cursed Aslan for bringing this torment upon him.

* * *

Slinkey awoke suddenly, having heard someone call his name. He arose from where he had been laying on the ground, realizing that he still lay in the battlefield in front of the stable. However, the stable was no longer standing; in its place was a wooden door frame. The sky was very dark, but there shined such a great light from the direction of the door that Slinkey had to blink several times before he could make out what was there. What he saw both horrified and disgusted him. Thousands of Narnians, Archenlanders, Calormenes, and islanders were running toward the door, and in front of the door itself stood a creature so magnificent that it did not take Slinkey long to realize Who it was. This was the true Aslan, the One that he had claimed to hate with a passion. And Slinkey knew it was finally time to face Him.

The line, which was really more like a disorganized mass, moved quickly, and soon Slinkey reached Aslan. He looked Him straight in the face, and, though he did not speak aloud, his face seemed to say,

"I fear You, and at the same time, I hate You. I hate You more than I have ever hated anyone."

The expression on Aslan's face changed only slightly enough for Slinkey to notice, and in response, he silently replied,

"I know. I am sorry."

Aslan stared at Slinkey, and the last thing Slinkey felt was a great and terrible change within him, one that now, he would never be able to speak of. No longer did he have an intelligent mind of his own; he had become a dumb beast. He moved quietly to the right, Aslan's left, and was known no more.

A/N: Did anyone notice the spiritual element here? There are many people in this world today who reject Jesus as their Lord and Savior because of something bad that happened that they feel can never change the way they feel. We need to reach out to these people so that they don't suffer the same fate as Slinkey.


End file.
